By Dorcas Francis Koji
Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan finished fourth in the women’s 100m hurdles at the Diamond League final in Brussels on Saturday as American star Masai Russell captured the title with a meet-record time of 12.20 seconds.
Russell dominated the highly anticipated race, marking her first competitive appearance since she dethroned Amusan as the world record holder in the event.
The American’s training partner, Devynne Charlton of the Bahamas, produced a national record of 12.33 seconds to finish second, while Jamaica’s Megan Simmonds secured third place in 12.43 seconds.
Amusan crossed the line in 12.54 seconds, missing out on the podium despite entering the final determined to reclaim her position among the leading hurdlers in the world.
The Brussels showdown attracted considerable attention following Russell’s stunning performance in Zurich, where she clocked 12.09 seconds to break Amusan’s four-year-old world record by three-hundredths of a second.
Russell’s Zurich run also made her the first woman in history to officially break the 12-second barrier in the 100m hurdles.
Amusan, however, had shown signs of strong form heading into the Diamond League finale.
The Nigerian secured victory at the Grand Prix Brescia in Italy on August 31, clocking 12.56 seconds despite facing a strong headwind. She finished ahead of American Alaysha Johnson and Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent.
That victory followed her second-place finish behind Russell in Zurich, where Amusan ran a season-best 12.23 seconds.
Despite missing the podium in Brussels, Amusan remains one of the most successful athletes in Diamond League history, having won the women’s 100m hurdles title three times in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The Nigerian first set the world record at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, producing a sensational 12.12 seconds in the semi-finals.
She went even faster in the final, winning in 12.06 seconds. However, the performance could not be ratified as a world record because the tailwind exceeded the permitted limit.
The latest result in Brussels means Amusan will now turn her attention to the next phase of the athletics season as she continues her pursuit of major honours and another challenge for the world record.
For Russell, meanwhile, the Diamond League crown adds another major achievement to a remarkable season and further establishes her as the new benchmark in the women’s 100m hurdles.
The Brussels final was among the headline events of the Diamond League finale, which brought together several Olympic champions and world record holders, with event winners also securing automatic qualification for the $10 million World Athletics Ultimate Championship.
Leave a comment